After the recent rejig of the 3G tariff plans, mobile internet consumers have surely been made a happier lot.
There is more usage allowed now, for the same price as earlier. However, there still seems to be some confusion about what each operator is offering, and what tariff plan makes sense for users.
You can check out the complete listing of what the operators offer, in the table below. For simplicity’s sake, we are only considering 3G plans that have a validity / billing cycle of 30 days, and not considering the lesser duration plans.
From what we notice, the plans are largely similar for the most part. However, for the postpaid users, Vodafone is clearly a no-no. While Vodafone has rejigged the tariff offerings for prepaid 3G users, postpaid users have been left with the more expensive older plans.
| | Price (Prepaid) | Price (Postpaid) | Data Usage |
| Airtel (Prepaid) | Rs. 99 | Rs. 100 | 300MB |
| | Rs. 250 | Rs. 250 | 1GB |
| | Rs. 450 | Rs. 450 | 2GB |
| | Rs. 750 | – | 4GB |
| | | | |
| Vodafone | Rs. 109 | | 300MB |
| | Rs. 249 | Rs. 375 | 1GB |
| | Rs. 449 | Rs. 650 | 2GB |
| | Rs. 850 | Rs. 850 | 3GB |
| | Rs. 1,250 | Rs. 1,250 | 5GB |
| | Rs. 1,500 | | 10GB |
| | | | |
| Reliance GSM | Rs. 255 | Rs. 250 | 1GB |
| | Rs. 449 | | 2GB |
| | Rs. 650 | | 3GB |
| | Rs. 800 | Rs. 800 | Unlimited (21.1Mbps up to 5GB, 64kbps beyond that) |
| | Rs. 1,099 | Rs. 1,099 | Unlimited (21.1Mbps up to 10GB, 64kbps beyond that) |
| | Rs. 1,300 | Rs. 1,300 | Unlimited (21.1Mbps up to 15GB, 64kbps beyond that) |
| | | | |
| BSNL | Rs. 100 | Rs. 90 | 300MB |
| | Rs. 250 | Rs. 220 | 1.2GB |
| | Rs. 450 | Rs. 400 | 2.5GB |
| | | | |
| MTNL | Rs. 99 | Rs. 99 | 300MB |
| | Rs. 149 | Rs. 149 | 500MB |
| | Rs. 250 | Rs. 250 | 1.1GB |
| | Rs. 350 | Rs. 350 | 1.5GB |
| | Rs. 450 | Rs. 450 | 2.2GB |
| | Rs. 650 | Rs. 650 | 3.3GB |
| | | | |
| Idea | Rs. 100 | | 300MB |
| | Rs. 250 | Rs. 250 | 1GB |
| | Rs. 350 | Rs. 350 | 1.5GB |
| | Rs. 450 | Rs. 450 | 2GB |
| | | Rs. 599 | 3GB |
| | Rs. 950 | Rs. 950 | Unlimited (21.1Mbps up to 6GB, and 128kbps beyond that) |
Basic users: Technically, the Rs. 99 / Rs. 100 tariff plans sound like a good deal, but with the quick speeds on 3G, 300MB will be consumed in a jiffy. Don’t underestimate the speeds of 3G. We strongly recommend a step up and taking the next plan, offering 1GB of usage. All operators are offering it for around Rs 250. MTNL have smartly slotted a plan right between these two – Rs. 149 for 500MB. If you are getting 3G on your phone for social networking, IM and the occasional web browsing, this may be the best deal for you.
Recommended plan:
MTNL: Rs. 149 – 500 MB
Medium-Heavy users: We assume your usage will be about social networking, IM and considerable amount of web browsing. You should ideally be getting at least 1GB of data to satisfy the usage for a complete billing cycle. Most operators are offering this for around Rs. 250. However, MTNL and BSNL are offering more – 1.1GB and 1.2GB respectively. We suggest getting the BSNL plan, considering 200MB extra per month is a lot.
Recommended plan:
MTNL/BSNL: Rs. 250 / Rs. 220 – 1.2 GB
The Data Hogs: If you fall in this price category, sky is the limit as far as data usage is concerned – social networking, audio and video streaming, and even downloading stuff on 3G, and then some. For you, we believe that the Vodafone 10GB plan makes the most sense. You could also go for the new “unlimited” plan that Reliance offers, but after 15GB data is consumed, only the data speeds will be reduced to 64Kbps. As a thumb rule, 4GB – 5GB data usage should be the minimum you should sign up for, and anything less will mean usage will go beyond the free usage and you will probably pay more.
Recommended plan:
Vodafone: 10GB @ Rs. 1,500 (only for prepaid)
Reliance: 15GB unlimited @ Rs. 1,300 (Speed cut to 64kbps after 15GB)